If the first two tournaments are any indication on how the season might play out, the Lowry High School boys golf team looks to be in a good position to return to the state tournament as a team.
The Northern 3A opened its season with a pair of tournaments in Fernley and Dayton. The Buckaroos finished third in both events. The top three teams in the final league standings advances to the state championships.
“I was pleasantly surprised with the way we started out,” said LHS coach Andrew Meyer. “I thought the scores would be higher. They guys came out and played two days of good golf. For the first two tournaments, I will take those third-place finishes.”
Lowry began the year in Fernley on Tuesday, March 7, and shot a team score of 443. Churchill County claimed the team title, while Spring Creek was a close second.
Zane Fifield led the way for the Buckaroos with an 18-hole score of 82. That is the best round of his high school career. Fellow juniors Steven Bosch and Peyton Capellen carded rounds of 87 and 88 respectively.
Sophomore Dillon Patterson shot a 91, while freshman Kobe Stoker shot a 95 in his first high school tournament. Seth Duncan rounded out the Lowry scores with a 102.
“Fernley is a good course to open with,” Meyer said. “It’s wide open and you can get away with some mistakes. To have three guys in the 80s was nice and it was a good day for Zane. Kobe played well for his first tournament.”
The Northern 3A made its way over to the Dayton Valley Country Club on Wednesday, March 8. Better weather conditions made for lower scores on the tough course. A day after shooting 443, Lowry had four scores in the 80s and finished with a 447.
“I will take four scores in the 80s at Dayton,” Meyer said. “It can be a tough course, but they moved the tees up quite a bit and it played easier. I am still happy where we finished.”
This time around, Spring Creek won the team title, and Churchill County was second.
Patterson paced the Buckaroos with an 86, while Bosch shot 87, Fifield 88 and Capellen 89. Stoker carded a 97 and Duncan finished with a 106.
“It looks like Spring Creek and Churchill County are the teams to beat,” Meyer said. “But, we were not too far behind them in the team standings, so I am encouraged. I was surprised from the first two tournaments and we need to just keep getting better. Be can’t be happy and settle for what we have already done.”
The Northern 3A makes a stop in Winnemucca today (Wednesday) for a 10 a.m. start at Winnemucca Municipal Golf Course.
“Hopefully, we can sneak and second-place finish on our home course,” Meyer said. “We need to stay right around second or third to accomplish what we want for the end of the season.”
